Social-Emotional Development
Who Took the Cookies?
This is also a good game for siblings to join in as well. You can use real cookies or cut some cookies out of paper. Close your eyes while one person hides the cookies behind their back. Then chant the following:
Who took the cookies from the cookie jar?
Child’s name took the cookies from the cookie jar!
Who, me? Yes, you!
Couldn’t be! Then who?
Introduce the chant to your child and then play the game. Children enjoy games that involve hide and seek.
Cognitive Development
Counting with Cookies
Making cookies with your toddler? Be sure to count through all the baking steps.
“Let’s add 1 cup of sugar”
“We have added 1 teaspoon of vanilla”
“I’m going to mix this with the spatula, 10 times”
“There are 10 cookies ready to bake in the oven.”
Embedding math into our activities is easy and builds numeracy awareness.
Language Development
Storytime
Listen to BrightPath’s Storytime on our Instagram or Facebook page for the story, “The Gingerbread Man”
Ask the children questions about the story.
“Who chased the gingerbread man first?”
“Which animals chased the gingerbread man?” “Who ate the gingerbread man?”
Physical Literacy
Cookie Hop
Place round paper cutouts or round placements, in a path on the floor. Model and challenge your child to hop from one cookie to the next. If your toddler is not ready to hop, they can take big steps. Describe each other’s actions. “I’m taking a big step”, “You used both feet to hop”. This activity can also be done outside with sidewalk chalk instead.
Creative Activity
Spicy Smelling Paint
Add natural scents or spices (vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg) to a small bowl of paint. As children freely paint their new creation, describe the smells you notice and the specks of spice you see in the paint. “This one smells like cinnamon and this one smells like vanilla”
Additional Resources
https://www.weareteachers.com/best-virtual-field-trips/ – Live web cams in zoo animal enclosure, feeding of a giant octopus at the Seattle Aquarium, trip to the farm, exploring a coastal rainforest in a canoe, just to name a few.
https://www.gonoodle.com/good-energy-at-home-kids-games-and-videos/ check out these movement, yoga and mindfulness videos. You can also find off-screen home and curricular activities.